Conflicting reports on fate of Yemen defense minister

Confusion surrounded the fate of Yemen’s defense minister on Wednesday, with Houthi rebels claiming to have captured the official who is loyal to the country’s President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and a presidential official denying the claim.

“[Defense Minister Mahmoud] al-Subaihi was arrested in the city of Houta” in Lahj province, Houthi rebel spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam said in a statement aired by the militia’s Al-Massira television, reported AFP.

Abdulsalam said Subaihi and others arrested were “transferred to Sanaa and are held by the armed forces.”

But a presidential official denied to Al Arabiya Channel that Subaihi had been captured.

Subaihi escaped house arrest under the Houthi rebels in Sanaa this month and joined the president in Aden.

He had taken charge of organizing defense lines as anti-government forces approached.

Fierce fights took place in Houta between anti-Hadi forces and loyalists as the rebels closed in on Aden.